De Nouveau
by SaiyanBlack
Summary: AU [IYKa] She always had the ability to see what was not there. But when she encounters someone that has a similar talent, a connection appears that is deeper than she could have ever imagined. Continuation of the Spirit Arc.
1. De Nouveau

This is the in the same arc of both Doctuer De Spectre and Renaissance D'Espirt, a set of one shots that I wrote last year. You don't need to have read either to read this story, but I would suggest that you do so details and events presented here will be better understood.

* * *

**De Nouveau**

**By SaiyanBlack**

Chapter One

_Did you ever have that feeling that you were being watched? Did you ever turn around only to find that nothing was there? I'm what everyone would call a normal high school student; decent grades, great friends, and a loving family. The only difference between you and me is that when I turn around, there's actually someone there – and I can see them… All of them._

"Kagome?" her mother called up the stairs of their quaint home in the more suburban section of Boulder, Colorado. Sitting at her desk, the dark-haired teen tilted her chair back to peer out the open door and down to the kind face of her mother. The older woman gave her daughter a kind smile, "Dinner is almost ready. Why don't you save the rest of your work for later and help me set the table before your father gets home?"

"Alright, mama," she called, letting her chair fall back onto all four legs before she closed her math book and placed her pencil down beside it. Downstairs, her mother still worked in the kitchen, cooking dinner for their small working-class family. It was a tradition for them to eat together on Sunday's because it was the one day that her mother and father were both home in the evening. Her father ran a café near the campus and her mother worked as a counselor part time between her high school and the university, so it was times like Sunday evenings where the three of them could be together.

As Kagome was setting the table, the garage door opened and her father stepped in, kicking some snow from his boots on the step before he took them off. He was bundled up for the winter weather and he closed the door before too much of the heat escaped from the house.

"How was your day, Kago?" he asked as he pulled off his jacket and hung it on the old hat tree between the doors leading to the front and the garage. He placed a kiss on her forehead as he passed.

"Okay. Nothing special happened," she answered, positioning the silverware next to the plates.

"That's always a good thing," he leaned over and switched the knife and the spoon, giving her a teasing smile as he corrected her placement.

"Hey!" she threatened him with a fork and a narrowed look, but he only laughed and continued on into the kitchen where he embraced and kissed her mother with a warm smile. Kagome turned away from the romantic scene only to find that one of the spoons was slowly making its way to the far side of the table.

"Are you going to correct me as well?" she asked the little girl that sat in the chair closest to the window. One small hand was slowly pulling the utensil away, but stopped when she was spoken to. Big green eyes blinked up at the teen innocently and Kagome sighed, taking the spoon away from the child and returning it to its original place next to the plate. "Leave those alone. I hope you didn't do that to your parents."

"Who are you talking to Kagome?" her mother asked from the kitchen and she looked up at her parents, who were watching her with some curiosity. When she looked back across the table, the chair the little girl had just occupied was empty once more.

"Was it the little girl again?" her father asked as he placed a dish on the table and she continued with the silverware as if she had not just spoken with a child that had appeared out of thin air.

"Yes, and it seems that she wanted to criticize the way I set the table as well," she told her father, who laughed outright. "She wanted a spoon."

"Kagome," her mother said, setting the dish of pasta on the table before sitting, "I met a young man today that I think has the same ability as you do. He transferred to the university this semester from New York State and I could have sworn I saw him talking to someone out in the courtyard by my office, but there was no one there."

"He could just be crazy," her father joked as he passed the salad bowl to Kagome over the table. She began to dish out her food, while she digested what her mother had just told her. Her parents continued their conversation, moving to the topic of repairs for the café and when would be the best time to make them now that the winter semester had started and more students had joined the campus.

She'd never met someone that could see the same things she could and the spirits she came in contact with never seemed to know anything about the world outside of the area that they were attached to, including the presence of other ghosts. It would be interesting to meet someone outside her family that actually believed her – then again, her father was probably right. The guy was probably crazy or stressed out from his classes.

What was the likelihood that there was actually someone out there that could really see and talk to the dead?

* * *

Her high school was built in the 1940's and there had never been any doubt in her mind that the building was a "hot spot" for spirits that hadn't quite figured out that they had graduated – in some way or another. She knew that the teen years were many of the hardest for people and that was reflected by the amount of teen deaths in the world, not to mention that all the ghosts that still attended her high school, except for an old janitor that still cleaned the halls, were tragic teens that continued going to class everyday.

Like the one that often held Kagome's attention in her history class. A senior boy; young, handsome and charming – all qualities that would have made him popular in life when he lived in the fifties, if his clothes were any indication. Of course, she doubted that when he was alive that he walked around with a bullet hole in his head and blood covering his letterman jacket. He was in the class everyday, listening to the teacher as she discussed the Vietnam War.

Kagome could tell that he wasn't as connected to the living world as some spirits, mostly because he didn't react in any way to a lesson that was focused on a war that happened after he died. She had also never seen him interact with people or objects, including herself. He seemed to be stuck in a time warp, trapped in a classroom that had meant something to him in life.

The bell rang and the students stood, collecting their things before exiting the classroom. But when Kagome looked back into the room from the doorway, the young man still sat at the desk, looking at the front of the class as if the bell never rang.

"Kagome!"

In the hall, three girls came to collect her from the door and the four of them walked to their lockers in the lower level of the school, giggling all the way down the stairs.

"So are you coming or not, Kagome?" Ayumi asked as she fiddled with the combination of the locker she and Yuka shared. The teen in question sighed as she pulled her books out of her locker before closing it.

"I don't know-" she started, but was interrupted.

"Oh, come on!" Yuka whined.

"…I have to work tonight and-"

"Kagome, you don't even get paid for all the work you do in the café! And the only person that pulls in more hours than you is your father," Eri pointed out as they walked out into the snowy courtyard at the front of their school and to the parking lot. Kagome had to think it over in her head and it seemed she didn't have much time with the speed they were walking to Yuka's car.

"Oh fine," she conceded with a sigh as the three teens squealed, "but I have to talk to my dad about it. So can we stop by the café first?"

"What if he says no?" Ayumi asked as they piled into the old '24 Saturn. Kagome had no answer for that – in truth, she was hoping that he did say no. They last thing she wanted to do on a Monday evening was run around the mall for hours, looking at clothes that she didn't want to buy.

"If you want to," her father told her as he refilled the espresso machine on a side counter of the small, casual café. As was normal for a weekday afternoon, it was filled with college students doing homework at the personal tables or in one of the many lounging chairs situated around comfortably.

The trio behind her just bounced with energy and Kagome blanched, sending her father a clear look of help – to which he just raised a dark brow before he schooled his face to a serious look that she always associated with her grandfather when he was trying to be dramatic, one that he must have passed on to his only son, who was the spiting image of him in his "better years."

"Of course, I could use your help here. Kouga called in sick again today and I'm starting to think that he's just praying on my trusting soul."

Kagome had to stifle her giggle and she was sure that the bouncing of her shoulders would have given them away to the girls behind her, but they only let out disappointed sighs. She turned to look at them and they waved as they left the café.

"See you tomorrow, Kagome! Maybe you can come shopping with us next time," Eri called before the door shut behind them, the bell at the top tinkling lightly.

"You know," her father began when she placed her books and bag into his office, "your friends are going to remember me as the man that never let his daughter have a life. Why not just tell them that you didn't want to go?"

"Where do you think they wanted to go?" she asked, tying an apron around her waist before pulling her hair back from her face in a low ponytail. "I'll give you ten guesses."

"The mall again?" he asked as they walked behind the counter. "Didn't they just go last week? I know the mall is considered a teen hangout, but that's just ridiculous."

"You're telling me," Kagome laughed as she pulled clean mugs and ceramic café cups out of the industrial dishwasher and into their correct places in the shelves below the high counter. "I'm so tired of shopping and gaping at boys from the university."

"And why won't you tell them that?" he repeated, but went into the kitchen before she could answer him and leaving her with that last thought. That's another talent he must have learned from Grandpa, she thought as she made new batches of coffee. Both her grandfather and her father had the ability to make you think about the things that you didn't want to think about. They were like her personal counselors, there with a ready ear if she ever had too many problems to deal with on her own.

Her grandfather knew a lot about her ability to see the dead and had told her that she must have inherited the talent from her Great-Aunt Kagome, the woman that she was named after and seemed to share many physical qualities with. She had died when she was about nineteen, on her way over the Sierra-Nevada Mountains back in 1992. Her grandfather was well into his seventies now and his wife of forty-nine years and her grandmother, Sango, had died less than two years ago when her immune system crashed and she caught a bad case of pneumonia from the very cold winter that came through Colorado every couple of years. Now her grandfather and her Great-Uncle Sota were the only people in the family that remembered her great-aunt.

The chime from the door of the café took her out of her thoughts and she looked up as the two customers approached the counter. She saw Kouga immediately and raised a slender brow when he flashed her a cocky grin.

"Dad's going to be mad at you for faking-sick again," she told him before he had a chance to toss her a lurid comment like he usually did.

"Aw, come on Kagome," he whined and she returned to working as he leaned up against the front of the counter. She kept both eyes on him, daring him to come closer; he was very touchy-feely when it came to girls. "Don't tattle on me."

"She won't need to," came the sharp voice of her father from the kitchen door, moving aside to let one of the girls pass through with food for a customer. "You either start bussing tables now, or you get out of my café, Kouga. I won't deal with you much longer if you keep playing hooky on my time."

"Sorry, Mr. H.," the college student apologized, hands up next to his head as he walked past the part-Japanese man and into the kitchen, his boss following behind him. Kagome suddenly felt as if someone was watching her, much like the feeling she got when there was a spirit in the room, but when she looked up it was not a ghost she saw. It was a young man with silver hair and very familiar eyes that caught hers immediately.

Very familiar amber eyes.

* * *

AN: The year in this story is about 2043, but it's not going to be a sci-fi in any way since I doubt that everyone will have flying cars in 39 years. It just doesn't seem logical to me. So ignore the date completely if it makes you feel more comfortable or think of it as the current year since that is kind of what I'm going for anyway. 


	2. De Nuevo

**De Nouveau**

**By SaiyanBlack**

Chapter Two

She froze. Those eyes… she'd seen those eyes somewhere before, but she couldn't remember ever seeing eyes that particular shade of gold. Although it was his very presence that had her so completely still. She felt overwhelmed and short of breath, as if all the air around her had thinned when she met his gaze. But it wasn't a bad experience. In fact, she felt warm and relieved, sort of like she would if she were coming home after a long vacation.

All these contradicting emotions and feelings seemed to swim around inside her in a jumble, making her feel as if she was about to tip over from the light headedness that seemed to come over. But his golden gaze, that seemed just as surprised and shocked as hers must have seemed, kept her on her feet.

"Inuyasha," the tension between them severed quickly and she could swear that she got whiplash when amber-eyes were pulled away. Kagome had to take a deep breath to calm her nerves before she collapsed and Kouga continued as if he hadn't interrupted anything, "Man, I'm sorry. I need to start working if I want to keep my job. I didn't think that Mr. H would give me such a tongue lashing for skipping a day."

Kagome felt as if her knees were going to give out and she leaned against the back of the counter and sat on the floor before she fell. Her heart was racing and her breath came shaking gasps but she felt calm at the same time. Neither Kouga nor… _he_ seemed to realize that she was no longer standing and frankly, she wasn't paying any attention to the conversation that they were having, finding that she needed all her concentration to return her body back to normal.

What was that! Those eyes seemed so familiar, but she was sure that she had never seen him before. And his presence! She felt like she was being engulfed, drowned, drugged and suffocated all in the same instant and all she did was meet his eyes. Those eyes…

Someone cleared their throat above her and she looked up, the back of her head making a thunk sound as it connected with the wood paneling of the counter. The eyes that haunted her thoughts were staring down at her over the edge with a shocked look that bordered on amused. Silver hair fell over one shoulder from where it was pulled back much like hers was and his bangs were long and touched his face wildly. He had very strong facial features, high cheek bones and a well shaped mouth and nose.

"Hi," she said breathlessly, caught once again staring wide-eyed at him. One dark brow went up into his bangs and a smile crossed his face, giving her a warm feeling.

"I think I saw this in a movie once," he told her with a small chuckle. She didn't move, stuck on the floor that smelled distinctly of old coffee grounds, staring up at him. He seemed surprised that she couldn't answer him and asked, "Can I get a mocha espresso?"

Still with the vocabulary of a four year old, she said, "Sure," and climbed up off the floor, broken out of her daze. She could feel his eyes on her as she busied herself starting the machine and found herself looking at him out of the corner of her eye or through her bangs. He was watching her intently as she worked, not bothering to step away from the counter even as other customers came to place their orders. She was reluctant to hand him the steaming café mug of coffee, but placed it on the counter in front of him with a shy smile and quickly averted eyes.

When she moved on to the couple standing behind him, he made himself comfortable in a chair across the room and pulled out his laptop to do what she assumed was work. As she placed the steaming mugs and plates of pastries on a tray to deliver them to the young man and woman that had ordered them, she looked up, meeting his gaze once again as he studied her over the top of his computer. Thoughts in a jumble, she absently served the college students for more than an hour, catching his eyes every once in a while when one caught the other staring. Ayame, one of the girls that worked at the café sent her funny looks when the she saw them watching each other.

Kagome was at the cash register checking receipts when he placed his oversized mug on the counter next to her; his tab (that he must have received from one of the other waitresses), cash and a clean napkin under it. She looked up at his face briefly, not surprised to find him watching her intently with a smile as she rung him up. He had given her a ten and when she picked up the bill, she noticed the napkin in detail for the first time. Seven digits in black pen crawled across the surface of the soft paper square, written by a very masculine hand in a very masculine scrawl. It was a phone number and her awed mind took a moment to process it. However when she looked up to question him, he was no longer standing across the counter, but back at the chair collecting his things.

A minute later, she was walking to him, placing his change and receipt on the table he stood next to. The slip of paper had her hand writing in blue ink over the back, proudly displaying the numbers to her cell phone – as well as her name.

* * *

"I can't believe you gave him your number!" Yuka yelled at lunch the next day after hearing the entire story from Kagome. The short-haired girl seemed livid and Kagome couldn't figure out why. "I mean, he could be some stalker or a rapist or some weirdo – you don't even know his name Kagome! How could you give him your number!"

"Yuka…" she began, prepared to explain for the fourth time that she didn't know _why_ she gave the golden-eyed man her number. But Ayumi spoke first.

"Was he cute?"

The three other girls turned to look at her with surprise and Kagome was the first to look away as they started arguing again. She sat back against the wall of the empty hallway that they ate lunch in during the winter, picking at her pasta from the cafeteria with her plastic spork. Frankly, it was a number of things that possessed her to do what she did; starting with that weird connection that formed when they first met gazes, the warm feeling that she got when he was watching her and the fact that he had been the first one to make a move. She found it was easy to follow his lead after the smile he flashed her when he gave her his tab.

Something in her backpack buzzed loudly and she dug in with one hand to pull out her cell phone, which was vibrating happily. She didn't recognize the number on the screen, but answered it anyway with a hesitant "hello?"

"Kagome?" the voice was masculine, "It's Inuyasha. We met yesterday at the café by the university."

Once he said his name, she knew who it was. It was very distinct and unusual, but it was his voice that she recalled first, so deep and gruff that it matched him perfectly. Her friends were still arguing about boys and propriety and didn't seem to notice that she was on the phone.

"Hold on a sec," she told him as she stood and walked into the deserted girl's bathroom in the art building. "Okay, I can talk now."

"Did I interrupt something?" he asked, amusement in his voice.

She giggled at his implication, "No, I'm at school. It's my lunch break."

"Do you go to the UC?"

"No, I'm a senior at Boulder High." She suddenly felt sad, knowing that now that he knew she was only a high school student, that there would be no relationship between them. There was a pause, where he seemed to consider the information that she had given him and she dreaded the moment that he spoke, telling her that she was too young and that it would never work out. That was the worst way that any blooming relationship could end, but she guessed that the connection that had somehow formed between them couldn't really be interpreted as a relationship.

"When do you turn eighteen?" he asked, surprising her and breaking the negative thoughts that were running through her mind.

"What?" was her startled reply as she blinked at the tiled wall opposite from where she was standing.

"I know you heard me, Kagome," he told her, then repeated himself, "When do you turn eighteen?"

"May 19th," she said, unsure why he had asked her that.

"Good, I can last four months," he said, though it seemed like he was telling himself that more than he was telling her. "I can wait that long."

"Wait that long for what?" she asked, confused.

He laughed, the deep, natural sound making her feel warm and tingly. She wondered what was wrong with her and why he was affecting her like this. Was it natural to feel such a strong attraction to someone you just met? And it wasn't just a physical attraction, although he was very good looking, but a connection that made her feel warm when he talked and made her want to stare into his eyes for as long as she could.

"Come on, Kagome," he said, still chuckling, "Don't make me spell it out for you."

"Spell what out? You're confusing me," she told him, frowning as he began to laugh once more. "What's so funny?"

"You," he said, "I can wait four months before throwing you to the ground and attacking you like an animal."

The blunt statement was not what she was expecting and she could face heat up as a dark blush spread across her cheeks. "Oh," she said, speechless as he once again started laughing at her embarrassment. In a way it told her that he was just as interested in her as she was in him and that comforted her somewhat. She wasn't the only one that could be going crazy. But at the same time, she was completely mortified by the implication of being tossed to the floor and ravaged like a heroine in a harlequin romance novel.

"Yes, 'oh,'" he repeated, sounding very amused. "You're so innocent Kagome. Why am I not surprised?"

"I don't know," she told him, "we've only just met."

"Maybe," he agreed, "but sometimes it feels much longer." A silence lapsed between them, but it was comfortable and she spent several moments just listening to him breathe through the line. She once again began to wonder what was going on with her, why she trusted this man so much even though she'd only met him less than a day ago.

"What are you doing today?" he asked.

"Nothing really," she told him, glancing at her watch to see how much time she had before the bell rang, "Why?"

"Boulder High is off of Arapahoe right? Isn't Central Park near there?"

"Yes," she told him, "it's only a couple of blocks away."

There was a short silence where Inuyasha seemed to be thinking. Kagome bit her lip with a bit of nervousness. What was he thinking?

"Do you think you could meet me there after your school lets out? Around two, right?"

"Yeah, I think I can," she agreed, but her conscience was screaming in her head, sounding an awful lot like Yuka. Why had she agreed to meet him? Why was she so damned attracted to him? Why did she trust him so much? She'd only met him the day before, but something inside her continually told her that this was right, that this was okay. It said that he wouldn't hurt her.

"Okay, I'll see you later then," he said. "I have to get going. My last class for today starts in about fifteen minutes. Bye Kagome."

"Bye," she bid in turn, pulling her cell phone from her ear. She stared at the screen for a few moments before storing his number into her phonebook. He would call again, she knew it, and it was better if she knew when it was him. Her parents would flip out if they knew that she was meeting a college boy after school instead of going to the café…

"Oh God," she sighed, placing her face into her hands, "if they find out, they'll kill him and then ground me until I'm thirty. What was I thinking?"

* * *

AN: For anyone that lives in Boulder, Colorado: I'm trying to be somewhat accurate about the places in the town, but because I don't live there full time (my dad lives in Boulder, but I'm under my mother's custody in California for most of the year) a few of the landmarks may be off. Several buildings and places (such as the Café) will be completely fictional, but others will be strait off the map.

For anyone that does not live in Boulder, Colorado: It's a very beautiful and intriguing college town. Great for looky-looing in cute shops and lounging in quaint restaurants. Personally, I love it.


	3. Nogmaals

**De Nouveau**

**By SaiyanBlack**

Chapter Three

Central Park was small compared to many of the parks in the area, but it had its charms. The one that Kagome liked the best was the beautiful rose garden that was at the end nearest the Boulder Art Center. The tall, sculptured rosebushes surrounded the area around a granite fountain and a white gazebo was nestled in a corner of the square, draped in ivy and roses. In the summer it was a scene out of a wedding catalogue, sans the blushing bride in the white designer dress, but in late January it was covered in a layer of snow and the rosebushes were bare.

Although, if it was romance you were looking for, there was a couple sitting at a bench near the fountain, his hand covering hers as they sat in silence. She leaned a little closer so that they brushed shoulders and he smiled down at her face with that arrogant confidence that a lot of men seemed to have around shy women. His head dipped down and he nosed her down-turned face with his, coaxing it up to him so he could kiss her slowly. The young woman sighed, caught in blissful waves of passion and contentment and let her companion wrap his arms around her and pull her closer.

In the gazebo, Kagome watched the couple absently, not registering the fact that she was observing the intimate moment because her mind was still revolving around the young man that she was waiting for. Her backpack was forgotten on the ground next to the seat that she had claimed, tilted onto its side and releasing some of its contents onto the painted wooden planks of the floor. A pencil had made its way about a foot from the top of the bag, caught within one of the grooves between boards.

Her thoughts were elsewhere, caught up in the whirl of emotions that seemed to surround her every time she thought about Inuyasha. He was a stranger to her and yet she felt as if she had known him for ages; he was so easy to talk to and his presence was comfortable to be around. She looked away from the romantic couple, finally realizing that she was watching their private moment and her eyes landed on the form of a tall young man walking around the fountain, hands deep in his jacket pockets as he avoided the embracing couple. His hair was as light as the snow and his amber eyes were glowing behind his bangs when he spotted her sitting inside the snow covered gazebo.

"Hey," he greeted, walking up the few steps to take a seat beside her. "Sorry about making you wait, I think I hit every red light from 16th street."

She laughed and looked up at him, "What speed were you going?"

"Forty-five," he told her, "why?"

"Go forty-three, you hit every green light that way."

It was his turn to laugh, "I'll have to remember that. How long have you lived here?"

"I was born here," she said, shifting her position on the bench because her leg had fallen asleep. "My mom grew up here and when she and my dad met, they stayed. My grandparents still live across town."

"Long history in Colorado then?"

"Not really. My great-uncle on my dad's side lives in California. My grandfather moved out to Colorado in the 1990's when he got married to my grandmother. He lives in Golden now." She looked up at his face, "How about you?"

"I just transferred here from New York State," he told her. "My dad and half brother still live in the city but I needed a change of pace, and the UC had all the classes that I was looking for."

She nodded in understanding, then asked a question that she had thought of while sitting alone in the gazebo waiting, "What year are you in?"

"Third. I know what I want to do, but I'm still trying to figure out exactly how to do it. It may be hopeless," he said with mock seriousness and she laughed accordingly. He smiled and chuckled. She pulled her jacket tighter around her, stuffing her hands into the folds to keep them warm. He noticed and reached out to pull her against his side, wrapping one arm around her shoulders. Kagome blushed, but welcomed the warmth that he provided, making herself more comfortable before asking her next question.

"What are you studying?"

"I have a double major in Chinese and Japanese, but I'm also studying Theories in Education and piano. What?" he asked, catching the surprised look on her face. She stared at him with wide eyes.

"I've never met a guy that's taking education," she told him truthfully, "are you planning on teaching your majors?"

"Of course not," he said with a look of disgust. "I want to open up a Martial Arts school, but my brother thinks that I may avoid future legal problems if I have a teaching certificate," he looked down at her questioning face, "he's a lawyer in the City. My personal legal council without the bill."

She laughed and he tucked her further against him before continuing, "I've been studying Asian languages since I was in fifth grade, but if I want any chance of being able to live in either country I need a deeper understanding of the language than just knowing what to say."

"What about piano? Just a hobby?"

He nodded, "My mother used to play piano when I was little. I had to leave her mini-grand at my dad's when I left and I missed being able to play whenever I want, so I took the class."

"Make's sense," she told him. "I want to go into business and communications. Advertising and journalism have always interested me. As for business, I want to be able to help out Dad with the café, so I figured that taking a class about small business will help us both out."

He looked surprised and asked, "Your dad owns the café? I thought you just worked there like Kouga."

She shook her head, "Nope. I work there when he needs me, but I don't get paid for it."

He nodded in understanding and they lapsed into a comfortable silence. She had no idea what he was thinking, but as she lay against him, wrapped within in his embrace and surrounded with his warmth, she found she no longer cared why everything was happening so suddenly. Only that it was. That little voice in her head was happy. Over and over it said, 'This is right, this is perfect, this is where you're supposed to be.'

She couldn't help, but agree.

Inuyasha's head leaned down as he stuck his face in her hair, nosing around her ear for a moment before taking in a deep breath and sighing. She giggled as the rush of air tickled her face and neck and she could feel him smile. Suddenly, he radiated playfulness and she steeled herself for the attack by pulling away slightly. A flash of color against the extreme whiteness of the gazebo and snow caught her attention, made her freeze completely.

Sitting on the bench just across from them, was a couple in clothes from the early twenty-first century, watching them curiously. It was the strangest sensation and it sent a shiver down her spine, even as the young woman gave her a warm smile. The spirit's companion mirrored the reassuring grin, but it made Kagome's skin crawl, especially when he turned to face the young woman beside him and the back of his head came into view, giving her a good look at the gore that covered him. Inuyasha had stilled as well, but he pulled her closer when she shivered. She could feel him watching her, but it was several moments before he actually said anything.

"You can see them, can't you?" he asked, his face close to hers. She looked up at him in surprise and he gave her a small smile. "You can see the couple sitting in front of us, can't you Kagome? Did you know that they were in a car crash back in '05? Down on Foothills Parkway by the airport, but this is the place that they had their first date, so they came to the place they were emotionally attached to."

"How…?" she asked, caught speechless. He could see them? Could he speak to them as well? Just as she could?

"They told me," he replied, "I can't see them very well, but I don't need to see them to know when they're there. I can feel it on my skin, like thousands of spiders are crawling up my back. Is that how it feels to you Kagome? Does your skin crawl at the sight of them?"

His mouth was next to her ear and he forced her to look at the couple across from them. The deep sound of his voice gave her the chills, sending shivers up and down her spine as his words made the bottom drop out of her stomach. The spirit couple watched with a small amount of interest and the woman turned around for a moment, and she saw that he entire back of her t-shirt was ripped and destroyed, her back slashed and broken. She wanted to turn away, but Inuyasha wouldn't let her.

"How do they look, Kagome?" he asked, "Do they still have their injuries? Do they look like angels?"

"Stop," she told him, closing her eyes so she wouldn't be able to see the two spirits. She felt as if the very air around her was pushing upon body and it made it hard to breathe. "Stop it, Inuyasha."

The pressure in the air seemed to lessen, as well as Inuyasha's grasp on her shoulders. His breathing was a bit harsh, as if he was trying to calm himself after an emotional exertion. He began rubbing her arm to soothe her as well, pulling her until she leaned against him, her head resting on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry," he whispered against her hair. He seemed to search for words, but settled with tightening his hold on her and repeating himself, "I'm sorry."

Kagome nodded in reply and turned her face into his shoulder, letting him comfort her, even though he was the one that had caused the emotional turmoil in the first place. But he said he was sorry, and for the same reason that she believed he was safe, she knew that he meant it.

"I know," she told him and a silence lapsed between them. He was so warm and the sound of his breathing was so comforting that she felt as if she could fall asleep right there, curled on the gazebo bench beside him. When she looked up for the other couple, they were gone and the only thing she saw were the bare rosebushes beyond the white railing. The other, living couple was gone as well, probably having left some time ago to find a place more private than one of the city parks. It was just the two of them in the rose garden, sitting together like any normal couple would.

"Hey, Inuyasha?" she asked and felt his questioning answer against the top of her head. The vibrations tickled. "My mom is your councilor right? Aimee Higurashi?"

He chuckled, "Oh, geez. Don't tell me that our lives are that ironic. We have a connection that neither of us understands, we can both see the middle plane in some way and now your mom is my college councilor. Wow, I can now sit down and write that romance novel."

She couldn't help but laugh as if it was the funniest thing she had ever heard. Within seconds she was shaking with uncontrollable laughter, leaning against his chest heavily as she tried to stifle the sound in his jacket. She could feel him laughing quietly as well and the tightening of his grip around her shoulders. After several minutes, she was no longer able to keep silent or remember exactly why she was laughing, but it was contagious. Inuyasha was laughing because she was laughing, and she was laughing because he was laughing. It was hopeless.

Chest still shaking, Inuyasha lowered his head to hers; dropping light kisses onto her face. They were so light and chaste that Kagome wondered for a moment if she was imagining the feeling. She turned her face upward and she heard him mumble something like "crazy girl" before settling one of the many kisses onto her smiling mouth. It was like a bolt of electricity being sent straight to the center of her body, one that made her warm even after his lips had moved on across her cheekbones. She sighed, relaxing so completely against him that he had to pull her closer or she would have slipped down onto the bench.

A light tune began to play, but it took her a while to figure out why it sounded familiar. Inuyasha pulled away slightly to lean down, reaching into her bag on the floor boards and pulling out her cell phone, happily producing a high-pitched melody. He handed it to her and she reluctantly answered it.

"Hello?"

"Kago? Are you still at school?" her mother asked, as Kagome mouthed 'my mom' in answer to Inuyasha's questioning look. He nodded and leaned back on the bench beside her, one arm thrown around her shoulders.

"No," she told her mother, "I'm at Central Park with a friend. What's up?"

"Nothing, I just got off the phone with your father and he said that you hadn't shown up at the café yet. I just wanted to know where you were."

"Okay," she said, "Did Dad say if he needed me there today?"

"Only if you want to, dear. But he would like the help."

"Alright," she looked up at Inuyasha, meeting his gaze as she talked with her mother. He watched her silently, sitting with a careless air that didn't reach his eyes. The golden stare had an intensity that sent shivers up her spine. "I'll go over in a couple of minutes."

"Okay, I'll see you later tonight then. Have fun, darling."

"Bye Mom," she said, then pulled the phone from her ear and ended the call. She smiled at the man beside her apologetically, but he only gave her a smirk in return before picking up her bag from the floor and standing. He held out his hand and she accepted it, letting him pull her to her feet.

"I'll give you a ride," he told her, keeping her hand enclosed within his as he lifted her backpack onto one shoulder and pulled her out of the gazebo. "The café right?"

She nodded and he led her down the paved path and around the fountain. Back on the gazebo floor, a lone pencil lay caught between the wooden floorboards, unable to make a move after its young mistress as she and the man that held her hand walked past the boundary of bare rosebushes and out of the garden.


	4. Noch einmal

Life happened again. Actually, this is the busiest season in high school theatre, so I was working for a bunch of shows, including the spring musical. I love theatre. There's so much drama to inspire me.

* * *

**De Nouveau**

**By SaiyanBlack**

Chapter Four

With a long suffering sigh, Kagome leaned forward onto the front counter of the café, arms stretched out and hands dangling over the opposite side. Her hair slipped over her shoulder, the low ponytail having released many of the dark strands onto her back and neck over the course of the day. The granite counter top was cool against her warm forehead and she let herself rest for a short moment while she had the time.

It was getting closer to the holidays, but the snow – which had come earlier than usual – was getting deeper and the air outside was getting colder. Although it was a different story in the café. Usually a warm haven in the cold months, the extreme cold outside and the added heat from the open kitchen made it even warmer. It was nice for awhile, but all the moving around she had been doing, in and out of the kitchen for the past four hours, was making her overheat.

"Kagome? Kagome?"

She pulled her head off of the counter and looked up for the voice. Behind her, Hojo, one of the cooks, was looking at her from the kitchen, a puzzled expression on his light face.

"Are you okay, Kagome? Do you want me to get your dad?" he asked, the puzzled look becoming one of innocent concern.

"No," she said, standing up straight and stretching her arms above her head. She missed the light blush that crossed the college boy's cheeks as she did so. "I'm okay. Just hot and tired. You're probably worse off than I am, you've been in the kitchen for hours."

The blush came back and she noticed it this time, watching him with a curious look as he stuttered and tripped over his words. "No, no. I'm just fine. I like cooking and the heat doesn't really bother me…that's why I roll up my sleeves like this."

He raised his arms so that she could see that indeed he did have his long sleeves rolled up around his elbows. "Maybe you should roll up your sleeves too, Kagome. You would feel much cooler."

She forced herself to smile and not tell the older boy that she had a short sleeved shirt on. Thanking him, she turned back to the counter just in time to see Kouga walk through the door with flurries of snow behind him. He saw her and cast one of his broad grins at her as he shrugged his heavy coat off. He stepped up to the counter and she saw that look in his blue eyes.

"Don't start, Kouga. You're late."

"Aw, come on, Kagome," he whined, giving her a look of mock hurt. He opened his mouth to continue, but was cut off by Hojo, who had popped his head out of the kitchen again.

"Oh, hey Kouga. Did you know that you're twenty-minutes late? You should get a watch with an alarm on it. You wouldn't be late so often."

Kagome stifled a giggle as Kouga rolled his eyes and sighed. With one last wink to her, he picked up his jacket and walked into the back to start his shift. Ten minutes and four customers later, the door opened again, letting a gust of wintry cold air into the cozy café that ruffled the loose strands of her hair even from the other side of the room. She looked up and saw Inuyasha standing just inside the doorway, at the same time that his eyes finished scanning the room and landed on her. He smiled at her and heat immediately came to her face. She hid it and the embarrassed smile that spread across her face by busying herself with wiping down one of the tables she had just bussed.

She knew immediately when he was standing behind her and she looked up at him from over her shoulder. His smile had gotten wider and cockier, but the look in his amber eyes gave her goose bumps and she shivered when he leaned closer to her back.

"As much as I would love to say that I came to see you again, that's not why I'm here," his voice was low and rough, making her catch her breath. After a second he let a short chuckle escape, his warm breath brushing the back of her ear. "You should breathe, Kagome. I've heard it's good for you."

She let out the breath she didn't realize she was holding and sucked in another just as quickly. He laughed softly.

"Hey, Inuyasha!"

The presence at her back lessened as he turned to greet Kouga, who now sported an apron around his slim middle. With another embarrassed blush, Kagome lifted her tray off of the table and carried it to the kitchen, trying not to look behind her at the two most frustrating men in her life. She could feel his eyes on her and swore up and down that she could still feel them even after the kitchen door flipped closed behind her.

Hojo was in the kitchen, hand washing dishes that sat next to the sink. She set her tray down next to him, unloading the dirty dishes and throwing away the trash. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't ignore the thoughts of Inuyasha that surfaced from the back of her mind so easily. That slow smile and the way that his voice sounded when he spoke to her quietly, it was her undoing.

"Are you cold, Kagome?"

She stopped her movements and looked up at the college boy in confusion. "No… why?"

"You just shivered. And I noticed when you came in that you had goose bumps on your arm."

He pointed it out so directly and she had to wonder just how much Hojo watched her. Frankly, it was quite frightening, now that she thought about it. Just how much did he notice?

"Hey Kagome?" Inuyasha called through the long window between the kitchen and the café. She looked up and saw him with his coat on, waving to her with one hand.

"Are you leaving?" she asked as she came out of the kitchen. He nodded and stepped closer so she had to look up to see his face. Much to her surprise, he bent forward and placed a light kiss on her forehead. When he pulled back, he had a smirk plastered across his face and an amused twinkle in his golden eyes.

"I'll call you later, okay? So keep your cell phone on."

He stepped back and with one last wave, he pushed the door open and walked back out into the cold street. She saw him pull his collar up around his neck, covering what skin his long ponytail didn't, before he stepped off the curb and to his red truck. After a short moment, the headlights flipped on, illuminating parts of the café before he pulled out of the parking space and into traffic. Suppressing a shiver, she crossed her arms over her chest, suddenly feeling very cold and empty.

* * *

"Kagome! Your cell phone is ringing!"

Kagome's dark head popped out of the downstairs bathroom, a bottle of nail polish in her free hand. Her father looked at her from where he sat on the couch, waving the twittering device in the air with an urgent look. She opened the door wider and walked jerkily into the living room, trying to keep her newly polished toes off of the carpet. Once the phone had been plucked from her father's fingers, she glanced at the number and immediately answered.

"Hello!" she chirped and started back to the bathroom, still managing to keep her toes off the floor. At the open doorway, she lost her balance and tilted to the side to regain her footing without having to put the digits down. "What am I doing? Just pampering myself. Just because I can, that's why."

The rest of the conversation was lost to the man on the couch, who had watched his teenage daughter shakily close the bathroom door behind her. With a shrug, he turned back to his book, relaxing in his seat once more. He wondered, in a protective father sort of way, who the caller had been. Having a business to run, he wasn't so involved in his daughter's life as some parents, and thus didn't know a lot of her friends, but he had never even heard of her speak of someone named 'Inuyasha.' It was definitely Japanese and he didn't know of any families of that nationality in town.

He shrugged to himself, _Maybe they're new._

A short scream from the bathroom had him up on his feet in a heartbeat. He thundered down the short hallway and pushed the door open. Inside, his daughter was up on the toilet seat, staring at the floor with wide eyes. She had managed to keep a hold on both the phone and the bottle of nail polish in her fright, but had caught her foot on the toilet paper roll when she pulled it away from the floor.

When he looked for the offender, he let his heart fall back into its place behind his breastbone and let out a short laugh. Kagome didn't think it was so funny.

"Daddy!" she whined, pulling her feet up closer to her body, "This is not a laughing matter! Just kill it!"

Diligently, he took a piece of toilet paper and caught the arachnid between his fingers. The little black thing struggled, waving its long, sinewy legs in an attempt to catch onto something. Kagome shrieked and turned her face away.

"Daddy!"

He laughed again and turned, walking out of the bathroom with the paper and creature in hand. He wouldn't kill the poor thing; after all, it was just looking for a warm place to get out of the snow. Behind him, he could hear Kagome talking on the phone again.

"It was all wiggly and gross! Ew." There was a pause, then her voice rose in pitch, "What do you mean you would have put it on me! You're just as mean as he is, Inuyasha! You guys are supposed to protect me, not purposely scare me! Stupid men."

He opened the garage door and walked down the few steps onto the concrete floor. By the water heater, he crouched down and let the paper fall, releasing the little eight-legged terrorist that had sent his daughter screaming back into the wild. It scurried away, finding a dark, warm hiding spot somewhere among the copper pipes. When he returned to the house, the bathroom door was open and he couldn't hear Kagome's voice. She must have hung up.

He leaned in the doorway, watching as she removed the damaged nail polish from the foot that had caught the toilet paper roll in her panic. She looked up after a moment, having caught site of him from the corner of her eye. She smiled and he returned it, his heart warming.

"The fiend has been disposed of," he joked and was rewarded with his daughter's laugh. In a lot of ways she reminded him of his mother, and at times, her mother, but she was always a little ray of sunshine and laughter in his life.

"Thank you, Daddy," she said, giving him a wide smile.

"You're welcome," he returned and was about to leave the room, but stopped and turned back to her. "Kagome, before you go out with this guy, introduce him to your mother and me."

She looked a little guilty, but nodded. "I will, I promise. I'll introduce him when he comes to pick me up tomorrow. We're going to the Art Center over on 13th. There's a Japanese culture exhibit there this week."

One dark eyebrow went up, "You're going to a culture exhibit?"

She blushed and looked down at her hand, continuing to paint her toe nails a subtle pink color. "Well, it was his idea. He's really into martial arts and swords and stuff. There's supposed to be old weapons on display."

His eyes went wide as he considered what she had said, "Wow. That's genius. Your grandfather would approve of this guy."

"Dad!"

* * *

This ended up being just a filler chapter. I needed to set up the next part of the story and wanted to get something out while I had the time. 


	5. Ancora una volta

**De Nouveau**

**By SaiyanBlack**

Chapter Five

A knock on the front door had her going down the stairs two at a time to answer it. "I'll get it!" she cried, her heavy footsteps thundering on the carpeted steps. She pulled the door open and smiled at the light-haired man on the other side, who looked very amused.

"I could hear you coming down the stairs from all the way out here. I didn't realize you were so exited to see me," he told her, a cocky grin crossing his face. She blushed and invited him in, avoiding his gaze as he stepped in the entryway and pushed the door closed behind him.

Instead, she found herself admiring what he was wearing. Inuyasha was one of those men that looked really good in jeans and leather, and she had to admit, he was very sexy – especially with that smirk. She felt her face heat up, growing even hotter as he laughed, leaning down to place a chaste kiss at the corner of her mouth.

"I don't know how you fit anything else in that head with your ego taking up all the space," she told him and his laugh escalated in volume. It was a wonderful sound and she soon found herself grinning up at him and giggling. When he stopped she gazed up at him wonderingly, "I think that's the first time I've heard you laugh like that. Full-out."

He leaned down to touch his forehead to hers, "I swear it's all your fault. I was never like this until I met you, kitten." He didn't give her the chance to comment on the new nickname, but pulled back with that smirk on his face again. "And why shouldn't I have an ego? I'm fluent in three languages, I can kick anyone's ass except my father's, and admit it Kagome, I'm sexy as hell."

Her jaw dropped and she choked on her breath, not willing to tell him that she had just been thinking the same thing only moments ago. The sound of someone coming down the stairs saved her from having to make an attempt to answer him and they both turned to see her mother coming into the living room. The older woman spotted them at the entry and smiled.

"Hello, Mr. Tashio. How are you today?"

Inuyasha smiled and nodded in greeting, "I'm fine. How are you?"

"Busy," she said with a sigh, pulling on her coat and shoes. "You two have fun today down at the art center. At least it will be warm indoors. The way this weather is going, we'll have snow until March."

The two young adults moved out of her way as she opened the front door, stopping to give Kagome a kiss on the cheek. "I'll talk to you both later. Bye!"

And she was gone, the door closing behind her. A moment later, they could hear her car start up and back out of the driveway. Kagome look up at Inuyasha as she suddenly realized that she was alone in the house with a college boy nearly four years her senior. He seemed to come across the same conclusion and the smirk that had disappeared in her mother's presence returned as he pinned her with his golden eyes.

"Um… I'm going to grab my stuff," she told him, heading for the stairs again, "I'll be down in a minute. Just… have a seat."

She could feel his eyes on her as she went up and the feeling of his presence didn't leave even once she was out of his sight. Not for the first time, she thought about how unnerving it was to have that weird connection with the silver-haired, golden-eyed man, and yet how completely comfortable she felt around him. About the butterflies that she got when he smiled at her or the way that her body seemed to melt at the sound of his laughter. The lit to his voice, deep and gruff with that hint of a New York accent, made her knees wobbly. She had always been one of those girls that liked guys with accents.

He was such an enigma; so intelligent and aggravatingly arrogant, but with a gruff gentleness about his actions and words. They had only known each other for less than three weeks and had only seen each other every once in a while since that day in the park. When they talked, she was often caught between strangling him for being so damn cocky and oozing to the floor in a pile of mush because of the attention that he often gave her. He was constantly touching her; holding her hand or kissing her face in some way – short little brushes that gave her the shivers and made her heart flutter.

And that new nickname… kitten?

She came back down the stairs, her bag in hand and her clothes and hair smoothed of non-existent wrinkles, finding that Inuyasha had taken her invitation to sit and had made himself comfortable on the couch, knees spread and arms across the back. His eyes were closed and his face was more peaceful than she had ever seen it. When she stopped behind the couch, his eyes opened and he gave her a small smile. She returned it and, feeling suddenly very brave, reached out and smoothed his bangs away from his face. He seemed surprised at first, gazing up at her with lidded amber eyes, before his smile grew and allowed himself to relax.

After several moments, they were still there and she could have sworn that he dropped off to sleep under her hands. She was proven wrong however, when the small grandfather clock in the hallway gently chimed the first hour and his eyes popped open.

"We should get going," he told her, moving from under her fingers and standing. She grabbed her boots and tugged them on, sitting in the seat he had vacated to tie the laces. To her surprise, he knelt down before her, lacing up one as she did the other herself.

"Thanks," she said, even as he pulled the bottom of her jeans over the top of her boot. He smiled at her and offered his hand to help her up, but he didn't let go as he picked up her jacket and handed it to her. When she had slipped it on, he was holding the door open for her and they stepped out into the chilly afternoon. He allowed her to lock the door behind them before taking her hand again and leading her down the walkway to the driveway, where his big red truck sat.

Inuyasha opened the passenger side door for her and left her to get in himself. She didn't realize how _big_ the truck actually was. How was she supposed to get up there? She put her hand on the seat and attempted to get herself up into the high cab, but she had a serious lack of upper body strength and wasn't able to shift her weight from the ground to the foot that was in the truck. Inuyasha's laughter made her stop and she looked up at him, already seated behind the wheel.

"I'm glad you find this so funny," she grumbled, a blush across her cheeks. He didn't say a word, but he opened his door and dropped out of the cab. She watched him as he came around behind her and placed his hands at her waist.

"Ready?" he asked and she nodded. "Okay, jump."

She pushed off the ground and he lifted her up at the same time, pushing her up into the truck. When she was seated he closed the door and walked back around to the driver's side. He pulled himself into the cab with ease and started the engine with a smirk in her direction, pulling out of the driveway and down the street. They were silent for a very long time, the only sounds from the rumbling truck and the radio that was turned down.

Kagome looked over at him, but once they had gotten out of her driveway, he had not once turned his gaze away from the road. He was a very conscientious driver, a fact that she had first noticed the second time they had met, when he drove her from the park to the café. Even when he spoke to her, he didn't take the risk of looking at her. It was just one of his many quirks that made him… well, him.

"How'd you hear about the exhibit?" she asked, watching his profile.

"My Japanese Professor made it a requirement to attend if anyone wanted to pass the class," he told her. "So there's a chance that we might run into some of my classmates. I hope that doesn't bother you."

She frowned, but he couldn't see it. "No, why would that bother me?"

"Well," he started and seemed to hesitate before he continued, "technically you're a minor and I could get into serious trouble if anyone told the police we were going out. My classmates would be in the perfect position to tattle. They know me and they've probably seen you around before."

She was shocked, "Then why are we even doing this? You're the one going to get in trouble!"

He was silent as he pulled the truck into the parking garage at the end of the city block and reached out his window get the parking tag from the machine. She waited for him to answer, but even when he parked the truck on the second level and turned the engine off, he neither looked at her nor said a word. What was going through his mind? She wondered if their conversation had sparked some doubts in him.

"Inuyasha?" she asked, her voice quieter than she had intended. He turned his head to look at her, his golden eyes almost sad, before he reached for her and unhooked her seat belt, pulling her closer to him and draping her knees over his thighs. His arms were around her instantly, pulling her upper torso against him and leaning his forehead against hers, reminiscent of what he had done in the entry way of her home. But there was something urgent about the way that he tucked her against him that hadn't been present before.

"I don't care if I get in trouble," he told her, taking her hand and draping her arm over his shoulder, where she sunk her fingers into the base of his thick ponytail. "'Cause, this," he continued, pressing her closer to him, "this is right. And I'm being a good boy. I'll wait as long as you want me to, but I couldn't let you go if I tried."

"Okay," she whispered, feeling hushed after his confession. He didn't release her, but had closed his eyes and let his head rest against hers as the comfortable silence stretched in the trunk's cab. It was something she had come to expect when they were together, those peaceful silent moments where she was able to simply bask in his company. In the three weeks since that day he had walked into the café, she had come to know him as if they had been speaking for years.

He wasn't one for casual conversation, preferring to observe his surroundings or listen to music than to talk about nothing. He meditated every morning before he went to class and played the piano when he was sad. If he was angry, he spent hours beating up inanimate training devices in his apartment. He only laughed at things that honestly struck him as funny and smirked more than he gave genuine smiles.

Some things he had told her, like that his father and brother ran a firm in New York City and that his mother, a pianist in her own right, died when he was ten. Other things, like how he loved to eat Ramen noodles, she had picked up on her own after spending some time with him. And then there was the sixth-sense she had when it came to him, like she could feel him in the back of her mind, a comforting presence, but one she had never felt before. It was what allowed her to be so open and uninhibited with him, it was like her soul trusted him once she first laid eyes on him – but it was her brain that was having a hard time keeping up and doubting her actions around him when she was alone, making her wonder if this entire thing was a big mistake. But then she was with him again and it was just like he said, it was right.

"Inuyasha?" she asked and he answered with a questioning grunt that she could feel through his chest. "You feel this too, right? This weird connection between us?"

She felt his arms tighten around her back and when he spoke, his voice was low and gruff, "Yeah, I do." Then he sighed and pulled away slightly to place his lips against her forehead before pulling away entirely and opening his door.

"Come on," he took her hand and pulled her across the bench seat, "Let's go." He helped her down and once he had locked the truck, he took her hand again and led her out of the parking garage. Very few people were walking around because of the chilly weather, but a class of elementary school kids were filing out of the Children's Art Center as they passed by on their way to the exhibit. Kagome waved at a few of the children who waved back as enthusiastically as only a child could. She looked up at Inuyasha's face and found his smiling golden gaze on her, making her blush and look away.

When they got to the door, Inuyasha paid for both of their tickets inside the museum, to her exasperation and wouldn't take any payment back. She tried to slip a ten dollar bill into his jacket pocket, but when he held the door open for her and she passed him, she felt his fingers slide into her back jean pocket before he hooked his thumb into her belt-loop. He leaned over her shoulder, his breath hot against her ear.

"Can't trick me, kitten. Let me spoil you."

"Fine," she conceded, "but not all the time."

He laughed, "We'll see."

"Kagome, come look at this one."

Inuyasha dragged her around the exhibit quite literally, his thumb still hooked into her jeans. They had gone through the sections about kabuki, geishas, and traditional farming in about a half hour, but the weapon collection, as well as the samurai armor on display, had caught his attention for more than an hour and he pulled Kagome along with him as he explained each weapon's importance and the type of warrior that wielded it.

The one that had currently caught his attention was an old rusted blade, its sheath and hilt in no better condition. It didn't seem to be special or even in good enough condition to be a part of a museum collection.

"What's so special about this one," she asked and felt him lean over her shoulder so his face was right beside hers.

"This, kitten, is a demon blade," he told her and she snorted.

"There's no such thing as demons."

"Is this coming from the girl that can see ghosts?" he asked, his voice full of fake shock, "How do you know there aren't demons, eh?"

"Well, I've never seen demons," she said looking at the glass casing around the weapon. She could see her figure reflected back at her, slightly pale and inconsistent in the lit glass. Behind her reflection, Inuyasha's silver hair seemed to glow and his golden eyes were looking elsewhere as his red shirt was pressed up against her back. At her hips, two of his long fingers had found their way under her shirt where it met her jeans. Looking back up at the reflection of his face, she found that he was watching her as well, amber eyes amused, before he turned his head and pressed his lips against her temple.

"Come on," he said, guiding her away from the sword, "there's still lots to see."

"Like what?" she asked as they finally left the weapon exhibit.

"Food!" he exclaimed and she laughed. She should have guessed; the only thing that would be able to pull him out of a room with swords was food.

They passed a dark haired man on their way past an armor display with a sickle, she felt the hair at the back of her neck stand on end and she turned to look at him over her shoulder. To her surprise, he was staring at them with haunting brown eyes and she shivered from the look he cast her. Inuyasha tightened his arm around her back, tucking her closer to his side.

"Are you cold?" he asked, a concerned expression in his warm eyes as he looked down on her head.

She smiled up at him, "No. I'm fine."

They stopped, or Inuyasha stopped, at a table with sushi tasters and the attendant handed them a small square dish with a rice roll and a set of chopsticks, bowing low. The pale haired man reluctantly released his hold on Kagome's pants bowed in return taking the plate and split the roll in two, showing off his great skill with the utensils, as he picked up one half and popped it into his mouth.

"I love Japanese food," he told her around the roll and offered the second half to her with the chopsticks. She opened her mouth to take the offering, trying to ignore the smirk on his face that caused her cheeks to heat up as he fed her. He was so sickeningly sweet sometimes, like some hero in a romance novel, but that arrogant grin often made her feel like he was trying to seduce her.

"It's good," she said in reply to his questioning look. He nodded and handed the plate back to the attendant with a short bow, but he kept the chopsticks in one hand, taking hers in the other.

They spent another hour in the museum before Inuyasha had established that they had seen and tasted everything of interest. She questioned him on how he knew, but the only answer she received was a careless shrug of one shoulder as he led her down the side walk to the parking garage. At the truck, he led her around to the driver's side.

"Inuyasha," she urged, tugging on their joined hands, "you need to let me go so I can get in."

He shook his head and opened the door, grabbing her around the waist and lifting her up behind the wheel, "It's easier if you get in this way. Now scoot over."

She did as she was told and he climbed up beside her, buckling his seatbelt and making sure she had done the same before he started the engine and backed out of the parking space. At the exit gate, as Inuyasha was leaning out of the window to give the machine the ticket, she saw the same dark haired man she had seen in the museum on the sidewalk beside the entrance. He was looking at her with that same dark gaze as before and she quickly turned away from his figure, focusing on Inuyasha as he pulled out into the street and drove toward her house.


	6. もう一度

**De Nouveau**

**By SaiyanBlack**

Chapter Six

When Inuyasha pulled up to her house and she saw her father's SUV in the driveway, Kagome forgot all about the dark-haired man that had spooked her at the museum. Now, her main concern was the introduction of Inuyasha to her father and the dinner that her mother had been planning before they left. Really, she couldn't think of anything – at least anything logically possible – that could make the evening go bad, but it was the jittery butterflies that had taken up residence in her abdomen that made all the impossible scenarios that her imagination thought up seem possible.

But as Inuyasha helped her out of the truck, she felt somewhat at ease. There was nothing that could happen that would make this night terrible. She had never seen her father over-react to anything and Inuyasha was always a gentleman.

The front door was unlocked when she reached for the handle, Inuyasha's hand wrapped around her other, and she stepped inside, pulling him along behind her. She could hear her parents talking in the kitchen and she called out a greeting as she and Inuyasha pulled off their jackets and boots. Kagome glanced up at him, admiring the red cable sweater that he had been wearing under the leather jacket. He noticed, as he always seemed to, and gave her that sexy look from the corner of his eye.

"How was the exhibit?" her mother called as they walked into the dinning room. She was setting the table and Kagome could see her father moving around in the kitchen.

"It was so cool!" Kagome told her, reaching out to help with the utensils. "I've never seen so many ancient artifacts in one place. It was just full of culture."

"Maybe your father and I should go. It's sounds interesting." Her mother walked back into the kitchen to help her father, leaving her and Inuyasha alone. She knew when he had stepped up behind her, the warmth from his chest against her back, and she stiffened in response. When he reached around her to correct her table setting, she nearly growled.

"What is it with people always correcting me when I place the silverware?" she asked, pushing Inuyasha away with one shoulder. She heard her father laugh from the kitchen and chuckles soon came from the man behind her. "Dad, mom, ghosts of little girls, and now you," she grumbled, glaring at him over her shoulder. He only smiled.

"Maybe people correct you because you can never seem to get it right?" her father suggested as he walked into the dinning room with a bowl of fried rice. She noticed that Inuyasha straightened slightly, but he didn't step away from her. Her father offered his hand to him and they shook. "I'm glad you could join us for dinner Inuyasha."

"Thank you for inviting me," the pale-haired man returned politely. "I'll take a home-cooked meal over TV dinners any day."

"You college students," her mother said, shaking her head as she came in from the kitchen, a steaming bowl of stir-fry in her hands, "you never take care of yourselves. I had three of you in my office yesterday asking to drop a few classes because they were getting over-stressed."

Her father laughed as they all sat down at the table; Inuyasha and Kagome across from her parents. "I thought that was the whole point of college," he said jokingly, passing the dish of rice across the table.

"I just don't understand it," her mother continued. "My college years were fairly stress-free, I don't understand why all the students now-a-days are trying to do everything at once. Take, for example, one of the freshmen that I have this year. He has seven different classes, three of which are extra-curricular and have nothing to do with his goal of becoming a virologist. He's just over-doing it."

"I don't know why anyone would want to become a virologist," Inuyasha commented as he held the stir-fry bowl for Kagome. He made a funny face and the high school girl returned the look with one of her own. Across the table, her parents traded smiles.

"What are the other classes?" Kagome asked her mother, turning away from a smirking Inuyasha. "I can't imagine anything too different from his major."

"Believe me, they are," her mother said between forkfuls. "He's taking history, textile art and music of the twentieth century – don't ask my why. He signed up for it despite anything I said against it."

"How random," her father added.

"Well, you're doing much of the same thing, Inuyasha. But I can at least understand why you're taking piano. It's a beautiful art and you're a wonderful pianist."

He almost seemed to blush under the attention, "Thank you, Mrs. Higurashi."

"You're welcome," she said. "You're also welcome to call me Aimee outside of school. Mrs. Higurashi is too formal for the dinner table."

He nodded, "Alright, thank you."

From there on, dinner went on without a hitch and all of Kagome's irrational fears were put to rest. Inuyasha seemed to get along fine with her parents and they really seemed to like him. Her father asked about New York and his dream of opening a martial arts studio. The two of them actually seemed to hit it off and by the end of the night, they were joking around like family. It was a huge relief for both Kagome and Inuyasha – who later told her that he had harbored some of the same reservations about the dinner that she had.

After dinner, Kagome's mother invited Inuyasha to play their old upright piano, but after testing it out, the college student told them that it was so horribly out of tune that even the most simple of tunes would sound bad. It was understandable; the piano hadn't been tuned in anytime in _her_ life-time, which was something of a crime to Inuyasha, who had looked at her mother with horrified amber eyes. Kagome walked him out to his truck sometime around nine-thirty, barefoot and without a jacket, something that he scolded her for when he realized it.

"You can be so stupid sometimes," he told her, opening the door to the truck and lifting her up onto the seat. "Why would you walk out in the snow without any shoes?" She stuck her tongue out at him and he moved forward to stand between her knees, giving her a teasing smile. "What am I going to do with you?"

"Dunno," Kagome shrugged, smiling back. It was easy to joke and tease when she was with him. Something about him made it easy to be herself. Maybe some of his vast self confidence was rubbing off on her.

"I know what I'll do," he said, leaning forward on his arms so that his face was directly below hers. He looked up at her with a smirk. "I'll ask you to have dinner with me on the 14th. Are you free that night?"

It took her a minute to realize exactly what he was saying. Not only was he asking her out on a date, he was asking her out on Valentine's Day! Somehow, through all the shock and butterflies – which had finally returned to her stomach after several hours – she managed to ask him if she had heard him correctly. Although, it came out as more of a squeak than the normal pitch of her voice.

"On Valentine's Day?"

His smile was bright and immediate, causing her insides to switch around. "Yes, on Valentine's Day. Can I expect you to be ready around five?"

She knew what he was saying, but her mind had yet to completely process that the conversation had moved on without her. She was still caught up with the first bit of information.

"_On Valentine's Day?"_

He laughed and pushed his face up to kiss her gently, just brushing his lips across hers before returning to do it again. It was a sweet torture that sent shivers up her spine and left her toes tingling – which may or may not have been caused more by the cold than the kiss. Frankly, she didn't care. She was far too interested in the sensations that Inuyasha's lips and hands – which had placed themselves on her thighs at some point – were sending through her body.

"Kitten," he started, using that nickname again, "I am going to take you out to dinner on Valentine's Day and I'm going to spoil you all night. And you," he told her, kissing her again, "are going to enjoy it."

"Okay," she said, her voice almost a whisper. She looked at his face, tilted up to look at her with his haunting golden eyes and an expression that she had yet to put a name to. There was something that drew her to him, not just at that moment, but every time that she was near him. Something that made her want to touch him and kiss him; something completely irrational that she couldn't put her finger on. As it was, she leaned her forehead against his, eyes closed and their noses barely touching. That were like that for several moments and she tried to imprint the feel of his hair and breath against her face.

"Come on," Inuyasha said, pulling away. "Let's get you inside before you freeze." He turned around so that his back was facing her and pulled her knees around his hips, lifting her away from the truck. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and he carried her all the way to her front door before he set her down, turning to face her again.

She gave him a bright smile, "Thanks." He snorted, a sound that could be interpreted by 'keh,' and opened the door for her.

"I'll call you later," he told her and bent down to give her upturned face a chaste kiss before starting back down the icy walk. She waved at him when he had gotten into the truck and started the engine, then went back into the house. Inside her parents were talking, seated on the couch in the living room. They looked up at her as she closed the front door and locked it for the night. Her father noticed her bare feet.

"I can't believe you walked out there without any shoes," he scolded. "Didn't your feet freeze?"

Kagome shook her head, "No. Inuyasha made me sit in the truck while we talked and he carried me back to the house."

"Good," was the only thing he said as he settled back into the couch. Kagome flopped down into the lazy-boy chair and frowned.

"Good?"

Her father smiled and clarified his previous statement, "I wouldn't expect anything less from him."

Kagome's mother rolled her eyes, as if his reaction had been expected and turned her gaze to her daughter from across the coffee table. "From what you and Inuyasha told us over dinner, your father and I were thinking about going to the exhibit while it's still in town. It sounded highly interesting and it would be a good splash of our ancestor's culture. We have been missing that since Grandma Higurashi died."

"I'm sure you'll like it," Kagome agreed. "Actually, I think I have the pamphlet about it in my jacket. Hold on and I'll get it for you."

She stood and walked back to the front door to search the pockets of her jacket. Finding it folded in half, she started walking back to her parents while she returned it back into its correct shape. Something on the front page caught her attention and she stopped to read over the light print.

_Collection owned by Hajime Taishio_

_New York City, NY_

Taishio was Inuyasha's last name. How many Taishio's could there possibly be in New York?

"Kago?" her father called from the living room, "Did you loose it?"

"No, I found it. I'm coming."

* * *

AN: A short chapter. This hasbeen posted at BI for a couple weeks and I've only just gotten around to uploading it on and Hopefully, I can work out another chapter before I catch a flight to my dad's house next week. 


	7. Еще раз

**De Nouveau**

**By SaiyanBlack**

Chapter Seven

Her parents did attend the culture exhibit together, about a week after she and Inuyasha had gone. The day ended up being the one of the coldest days that winter and Kagome had barricaded herself into the house, comfortably settled under a huge fleece blanket on the couch. It was one of those perfect reading days and she was finally getting around to finishing the latest novel she had picked up from her school's library. On the side table next to the couch was a hot cup of warm cocoa, still steaming in the chilly air of the living room.

She was so engrossed in her book that the sound of her cell phone ringing startled her out of the reverie that the black print had sent her into. Setting it down on its face to preserve her page, Kagome pulled herself off the couch – blanket and all – and searched for the ringing device in her school bag. By the time she had found it though, her voicemail had picked up and it beeped sharply, displaying "1 MISSED CALL" across the screen. To her surprise, it began to ring again; Inuyasha's name blinking at her.

"Hello?" she answered, expecting Inuyasha's smooth voice and not receiving it. Instead, he sounded rather urgent and it made her heart beat slightly faster.

"Kagome, are you okay?"

What an odd question. "Yes, why shouldn't I be?"

"Do me a favor and go look at your thermostat. Tell me what it says."

She frowned, but stood and walked toward the hallway, where the electronic thermostat for the house what situated on the wall. "Inuyasha," she asked, "what's this all about?"

"Just humor me, kitten."

She could swear that her heart rate picked up again. Something about the way he said it made her anxious and jumpy. When she looked at the blank digital display of the thermostat, she had a guess why.

"Inuyasha? I think the power's down."

"You got that right. It's out all over town," he told her. "My apartment is absolutely freezing."

"Where are you now?" she asked, going to check the lamp beside the table. She flicked it on and off, but it didn't light. On the other side of the line, she could hear a rumbling sound.

"In the truck, on your side of town."

She smiled, hearing the silent offer of his presence in the tone of his voice. "Let me call my parents and tell them that the power is out and that you came to keep me warm."

He barked out a laugh that made their connection break up and she pulled the phone away from her ear and ended the call. Next she dialed her mother's cell phone number and told them that the power and heat where out at the house. Her mother seemed okay with Inuyasha coming over and Kagome could have sworn that she heard her father arguing a distance from the phone. They were across town at the museum still and it seemed that their car was stuck in the parking garage. With the power out all over town, the automated entrances and exits were locked in the 'down' position.

Not too long after she hung up, she heard a knock on the front door. Still wrapped in her blanket, she peeked through the blinds and smiled when she recognized Inuyasha. She pulled the door open and he stepped in with the cold air, making her yank the edges of the blanket closer around her. He smiled at her as he pulled off his jacket and boots.

"Don't you look cute," he said, leaning down to kiss her forehead. He was wearing a red sweater under his leather coat again, this one so finely knitted that it stretched thinly across his chest and shoulders as he hooked his jacket on the hat tree next to the door. She supposed that she made an odd picture, wrapped up in an over-sized blanket that dragged on the floor behind her like she was a child.

She smiled up at him, "Make your self comfortable. I called my mom at the museum; it seems their car is stuck there until the power goes back on downtown." She turned to look at him as she plopped herself back onto the couch. Her cocoa was no longer steaming. "Inuyasha?"

"Yeah?" he asked as he took a seat next to her, putting his arm along the back of the couch behind her head. He stretched out his legs and turned his body to look at her with a lazy expression.

"How'd the power go out all over town?" Noticing the way he kept one hand in the pocket of his jeans, she offered some of her blanket to him, "Aren't you cold? It must be ten degrees out there."

"You're not too far from the truth," he said, allowing her to tuck him into the blanket with her. When she touched his arm above her head, she found that it was chilly and pulled it around her as well. "It's about nine degrees. I suppose that's one of the reasons the power went out. Something about the generators not making enough heat to keep going, or at least that's what they said on the radio before the Boulder station lost power too."

"What a disaster," Kagome said; practically sitting in Inuyasha's lap by the time he had finished speaking. Both of his arms where around her back and waist and she comfortably tucked herself against his shoulder. "At least I have you to keep me warm," she teased.

"What did you're dad have to say when you told him I was coming over?"

"He didn't say a thing," she told him as a sly smile spread across her lips, "I told my mom. _She _said it was fine."

He laughed, "Still, do you think I need to get out of here before he tries to kill me?"

"He won't," she assured him, snuggling into the warmth of his chest. "I won't let him."

She was getting sleepy. Maybe it was something about the heat he radiated, or the steady sound of his heart beating and the slow, even breaths moving through his lungs, but she found herself suddenly very tired. Kagome felt his hand brush through her hair, long fingers massaging her scalp and running his long nails against any knots. She could have sworn, as her eyes closed, that his chest rumbled with a low vibration that she could barely hear but felt against her cheek.

Just as she was finally nodding off, she felt him press his lips against her forehead, before tucking her farther into his embrace.

* * *

The power was eventually returned to Boulder later that day and Inuyasha had stayed over for dinner again – once Kagome's parents managed to get back home. The temperature also went back up, settling around thirty degrees for the rest of the winter season.

The next two weeks went by very quickly for Kagome, who was immersed in school, the café, her budding relationship with Inuyasha and fending off questions about that relationship from her friends. In all, life was normal for the 17-year-old and she nearly forgot about her date for Valentine's Day, if her mother hadn't decided to take her out for a shopping trip down the Pearl Street Mall the Friday before. It was just the two of them, doing something that they hadn't done together for ages.

"Ooh, Kago! Look at this blue one!" her mother called from one side of the bridal boutique they had dropped into. She was holding up a deep blue dress with a gentle scoop neck that seemed to shimmer in the overhead florescent lights. It was beautiful and when she tried it on, there seemed to be nothing more perfect. But, she thought as she stared at her reflection, there's something missing.

It was on her second round through the boutique that her eye landed on a simple red party dress, cut with vintage sweetheart neckline. She had never worn a red dress before and somewhere in the back of her mind, a little voice was saying how cheesy it would be to wear a red dress on Valentine's Day, but when she tried it on, her mother's reaction sealed her decision.

"Oh, Kagome," the older woman breathed, pressing a hand to her breast from where she was standing behind her daughter. "It's beautiful."

* * *

Her cell phone rang as she was putting on her make-up the next evening. The bathroom counter was littered with cosmetic materials that she had deemed the wrong color or too bright a shade. There were three containers of lipsticks in the trash, under a pile of toilet paper used to wipe and blot. Six different types of hair spray were on the floor next to a hair dryer, a curling iron, and two straighteners. In all, Kagome had attempted six different hair styles and a four different looks before she finally settled on one.

The chirping device was somewhere in the mess she had created and she had to dig to find it. Inuyasha's name blinked on the screen.

"Hi!" she greeted, tucking the phone between her ear and shoulder so she could continue putting on eye shadow.

"Hey, kitten. Ready yet?"

"What! No! Are you here already?" she asked, closing and throwing the case down on the counter before picking up a tube of mascara in a panic.

He laughed, "No. I'm just teasing you." She nearly growled and slowed her rusted application of make-up. "I just called to tell you that I'll be there at five, okay? That's in about twenty minutes."

"'Kay," she answered, "I'll see you then."

"See you," he said and then the line went dead. It was at that point that her mother popped her head into the room, looking in to see how she was doing. Over one arm she brought in the red dress they had bought the day before.

"Ready?" she asked as she slipped into the bathroom with her.

"Almost," Kagome said. "Let me finish up my make-up and I'll put it on."

A few minutes later, her mother helped Kagome slip the satin over her head and zip up the back. Then it took her about five minutes to figure out how her heels were supposed to strap on and at the end of it all, her father was standing in the doorway of the room, laughing at her frustration.

"Dad! Would you stop? It's not funny!"

He shrugged his shoulders and turned back to look at her over his shoulder, "I just thought you might want to know that Inuyasha is waiting for you in the living room."

"What! Dad!" she screeched and started for the stairs, taking them carefully so she wouldn't fall. "Why didn't you say something before?"

"I tried," he said, but the only person that heard him was his wife, who was standing in the doorway of the bathroom, one hand over her mouth to subdue her laughter. The two shared an amused look before they too started down the stairs, at a much more normal pace. Downstairs, Inuyasha was staring at Kagome with beautifully wide, amber eyes and dropped a kiss onto her forehead when she came up to greet him, causing a blush to bloom on her cheeks.

"Wow," he said, spinning her out with a grin so that her dress billowed around her long legs. "Aren't you pretty." He pulled her in again and she giggled.

Her parents joined them at the bottom of the stairs and they were subjected to several posed pictures and a curfew from Kagome's father before they were finally allowed to leave. Inuyasha tucked Kagome to his side as they walked down the walkway to his truck, pulling her flimsy jacket farther around her shoulders and preventing her from slipping on the icy cement. This time, instead of lifting her up into the driver's side of the truck and letting her slide across, he took her to the passenger side and placed her gently on the bench seat, waiting for her to pull her dress in before closing the door for her.

At the stop light that was the exit of her neighborhood, she felt his long fingers brush the side of her face and he smiled when she turned to look at him. It wasn't quite dark yet, but the orange glow of the setting sun reflected off his golden eyes and light hair and made him look almost urethral and unearthly. His hand pushed away a loose curl from her eyes and ran his thumb across her cheekbone. They stayed like that until the light turned green and he put his hand back on the gear shift.

As it normally was between them, they fell into a comfortable silence that lasted the fifteen minute drive through town from her house to the restaurant. Once they had parked, Inuyasha got out of the truck and came around to help her out, making sure that she had her footing before releasing his hold on her waist. As they walked toward the entrance of the restaurant, he leaned down to place his mouth next to her ear.

"I was telling the truth earlier," he told her. She turned to look at him and their noses brushed, sending a blush across her cheeks. "You look absolutely beautiful. And you chose my favorite color, too."

She pulled back to get a good look at him for the first time that night, not surprised to see that he was wearing a red silk shirt, top two buttons undone, and a black two-piece suit. It just occurred to her, that she had very rarely seen him without anything red on and in fact, he probably had more red shirts than the devil himself. But, she had to admit, he did look good in red.

"We match," she observed and he laughed, kissing her cheek. His hand remained on the small of her back all the way into the small restaurant and when they were seated, he helped her take her coat off and pushed in her chair when she sat. He had chosen a little Italian restaurant she had only been to a couple of times, but the atmosphere was warm and cozy. Their table was in a slightly secluded section, a bit off the main floor, so even though the place was crowded with Valentine's lovers, it almost seemed as though she and Inuyasha were off on their own.

"Been here before?" Inuyasha asked, looking at her from over his menu. At her nod, he went back to making a decision.

"A couple of times," she said. "My parents took me here for my sixteenth birthday, but that was the last time I came."

He looked up at her again and smiled, and seemed like he was going to say something, but their waiter came up to the table at that moment. The young man, probably a college student, asked for their order and after leaving with their menus, Kagome found herself alone with Inuyasha again. He was watching her from across the table, staring at her with an intensity that made her toes tingle. Her face felt hot and she knew that his presence was once again making her blush. He reached over the table and pulled her hand toward him, looking at it as if he was inspecting her crimson nails.

"You look good in red," he told her and kissed her knuckles. "You should wear it more often."

Her blush increased and she looked away from his eyes in embarrassment. "Red's more your color," she said quietly, "I tend to lean more towards blues and greens."

He seemed to take a moment to consider what she had said, "They look good on you too. Blue makes your eyes stand out." She looked up at him, not surprised to find him staring at her intently. "But red compliments your skin color."

She didn't think he meant the blush that hadn't left her face for past five minutes.

"Thanks."

When their dinner came, the conversation turned ordinary and they talked about school, family, and friends. Inuyasha had some outrageous stories about when he was in high school back in New York, some including pranks on his friends and riding a motorcycle through the halls of his private school. It gave her more of an insight of how different their lives were growing up. He, it seemed, had been a bit of a hellion through his schooling years – causing trouble for his teachers and family. Although, from the way he laughed as he told her, it didn't seem he felt any remorse for his previous behavior.

He asked her questions about her childhood in Boulder and about her grandparents. The only subject they didn't mention was the other plane, even though they both knew about the old man standing in the doorway of the kitchen, watching all the customers. Kagome could see him, and though Inuyasha couldn't, he saw her eyes wander in that direction every couple of minutes as if to make sure the spirit hadn't moved. Inuyasha still held her hand and he brushed his thumb across the back to turn her attention away.

Talking about his family made her remember the culture exhibit they had gone to and her discovery of the name on the brochure.

"Inuyasha?" she asked and he looked up at her with a raised eyebrow as he lifted a forkful of lasagna to his mouth. "Does your father own that Japanese collection we went to?"

He paused in his chewing and he blinked at her with his surprised golden eyes, before nodding slowly. Reaching for his drink, he washed down his food before speaking.

"Yeah, my dad has always been a big collector of Japanese artifacts. I think it started around the time he came to the US," he stopped and took a good look at her, "but how did you know that my dad owned the collection?"

"The brochure I took said Hajime Tashio from New York City owned the collection," she told him, "I assumed there couldn't be very many Hajime Tashio's – even in a city as large as New York. And you knew so much about everything we looked at. I'm surprised I didn't figure it out then."

"You're right," he said, turning back to his food. His other hand still held hers between them on the table. "There aren't many Tashio's in New York. At least not many wealthy enough to own a collection as large as my father's."

She returned to her food as well, unsure about his answer and somewhat unsatisfied by it. They were quiet for several minutes, both thinking about the other as they finished off their dinner. Kagome felt comforted by the presence of his hand still around hers and felt him run his thumb back and forth across it.

"Kitten," he started, making her look up at him, "Are you mad that I didn't tell you?"

She smiled at him and shook her head, grasping his hand tighter. "No. I'm just wondering why you didn't tell me. I think it's pretty cool that your dad owns all that stuff."

He returned her smile and brought her hand up to his lips so he could kiss her knuckles. "I didn't tell you because I thought it would seem like I was just trying to impress you with my family's money. I had enough girls on my tail back in New York because of that."

"Lot's, huh?" she teased, raising one brow as she gave him a sideways look. His eyes had a suspicious glint to them and he was about to say something when their waiter came up to ask if they wanted desert – interrupting Inuyasha for the second time that night. He sent the young man a glare, but ordered a piece of chocolate cake none the less. Kagome giggled at his expression once it was just the two of them again and reached over the table to smooth his face with her fingers. The glare disappeared.

Later, the cake eaten and the bill paid – Inuyasha wouldn't even let her see the total, they again headed out into the chilly winter weather. Some time while they were in the restaurant the sun had gone down and they hurried toward the truck to get out of the cold. Once inside, Inuyasha surprised her by leaning over the bench seat and kissing her soundly on the lips.

Startled, she found herself caught up in his embrace, still for several moments before she realized what was happening. When she did, she raised her arms around his neck, digging her fingers into the base of his ponytail and through his pale hair. He teased her, brushing lightly before coming back stronger. He gave those kind of kisses that made everything fall away until it was just the two of them; her hands in his hair and his around her waist and shoulders. She could feel the brush of his bangs against her forehead and his fingers and nails where they pressed against the fabric of her dress.

He pulled away just as she began to feel a burning in her lungs and pressed his forehead against hers while they caught their breath. Kagome looked up at him a minute later and attempted to suppress her breathless giggle. She wiped at his lips with her thumbs, trying to remove the false color from them. He looked at her curiously and she smiled up at him.

"Lipstick," she told him and his lips turned up into a smile under her fingers as he began to chuckle quietly.

Outside the truck, standing in an unlit crevice of the restaurant, was a ghostly figure, standing still as a statue, watching the cab of the red truck with cold eyes. Neither Kagome nor Inuyasha noticed it as the engine started and they drove out of the parking lot.


End file.
